Import/Export Price Indexes

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes News Release

Technical information: USDL-08-0457
(202) 691-7101 Transmission of this
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Internet address: http://www.bls.gov/mxp Friday, April 11, 2008
U.S. IMPORT AND EXPORT PRICE INDEXES
- MARCH 2008 -
The U.S. Import Price Index increased 2.8 percent in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
U.S. Department of Labor reported today, as higher prices for both petroleum and nonpetroleum imports
contributed to the advance. The rise followed 0.2 percent and 1.5 percent increases in February and
January. Export prices rose 1.5 percent in March, after advancing 1.1 percent and 1.2 percent for the
prior two months.
Percent changes in import and export price indexes
by End Use category
- not seasonally adjusted -

Import Goods
The price index for overall imports rose 2.8 percent in March, led by a 9.1 percent advance in
petroleum prices. Petroleum prices resumed an upward trend following a 1.9 percent downturn in
February. Prices for petroleum rose 60.0 percent for the year ended in March following a comparatively
modest 3.1 percent rise over the previous 12-month period. A 1.1 percent increase in nonpetroleum
prices also contributed to the overall rise and was the largest one-month increase for the index since
nonpetroleum prices were first published on a monthly basis in December 1988. The price indexes for
overall imports and nonpetroleum imports also advanced for the March 2007-08 period, increasing 14.8
percent and 5.4 percent, respectively.
The largest contributor to the March increase in nonpetroleum prices was a 3.6 percent advance
in the price index for nonpetroleum industrial supplies and materials. That rise was mostly driven by a
jump in unfinished metals prices, although higher prices for natural gas, finished metals, and chemicals
also factored into the advance. Nonpetroleum industrial supplies and materials prices rose 14.7 percent
over the past 12 months.
Prices for consumer goods; foods, feeds, and beverages; and automotive vehicles were all up in
March as well. Consumer goods prices increased 0.5 percent following 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent
increases in February and January. Foods, feeds, and beverages prices rose 2.5 percent, led by higher
prices for food oils, fish, and coffee. The price index for automotive vehicles advanced 0.2 percent in
March after ticking up 0.1 percent the previous month.
Capital goods prices were unchanged in March as declining computer prices offset price
increases for the remainder of capital goods.
Export Goods
Export prices advanced 1.5 percent in March, the largest one-month increase for the index since
overall export prices were first published monthly in December 1988. The index advanced 7.9 percent
over the past year, the largest 12-month advance since an 8.7 percent increase for the September 1987-88
period. Both the monthly and annual increases were driven by higher agricultural prices, up 4.1 percent
in March and 33.4 percent over the past 12 months. Soybeans and corn prices were the largest
contributors to the March increase, rising 9.6 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively. In contrast, the
increase over the past year was led by a 145.2 percent jump in wheat prices. Nonagricultural prices
advanced 1.2 percent in March which was also the largest monthly rise since October 1990. The index
increased 5.6 percent over the past year.
Nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials prices rose 3.7 percent in March, as prices for
fuels, metals, and chemicals all recorded increases. The price indexes for export consumer goods and
automotive vehicles also advanced in March, each rising 0.2 percent for the month. Both followed
similar increases in February when consumer goods prices rose 0.2 percent and prices for automotive
vehicles advanced 0.1 percent.
Prices for capital goods were unchanged in March after rising 1.0 percent over the previous three
months. Capital goods prices excluding computers advanced 0.2 percent in March, but a 1.0 percent drop
in computer prices offset those gains.
Imports by Locality of Origin
The price indexes for imports from Canada, the European Union, and Mexico all increased in
March, led by higher fuel prices. Prices for imports from Canada rose 3.2 percent for the month and
16.4 percent for the year ended in March. Import prices from the European Union advanced 1.6 percent
in March and were up 6.9 percent over the past year. The price index for imports from Mexico resumed
an upward trend in March, increasing 2.2 percent following a 1.8 percent downturn in February. The
index advanced 17.2 percent over the past 12 months.
Import prices from China also increased in March, rising 0.7 percent after a 0.1 percent gain the
previous month. The index had been up 0.9 percent in January. Prices for imports from China rose 4.0
percent for the March 2007-08 period, the largest 12-month increase recorded since the index was first
published in December 2003.
The price index for imports from Japan ticked up 0.1 percent in March and advanced 0.7 percent
over the past year.
Import and Export Services
Import air passenger fares rose 0.2 percent in March after declining in each of the prior two
months. A 1.2 percent increase in fares from the Latin America-Caribbean region was the largest
contributor to the overall increase, although prices also rose for European and Asian fares. The price
index for overall fares increased 6.8 percent for the year ended in March. Export air passenger fares
advanced 5.0 percent in March following a 5.6 percent decrease in February. The index rose 14.4
percent over the past year. Both the March and the annual increases were led by higher Asian fares.
The price index for import air freight advanced 1.1 percent in March, driven by a 1.7 percent
increase in Asian air freight prices. Import air freight prices increased 10.3 percent for the year ended in
March. Export air freight prices rose 0.3 percent in March after falling 0.3 percent the previous month.
The index advanced 12.8 percent over the past year.
CONTENTS OF RELEASE
This news release includes the following tables:
Table 1 U.S. Import Price Indexes, by End Use
Table 2 U.S. Export Price Indexes, by End Use
Table 3 U.S. Import Price Indexes, by NAICS
Table 4 U.S. Export Price Indexes, by NAICS
Table 5 U.S. Import Price Indexes, by Harmonized System
Table 6 U.S. Export Price Indexes, by Harmonized System
Table 7 U.S. Import Price Indexes, by Locality of Origin
Table 8 U.S. International Price Indexes for Selected Transportation Services
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Import and Export Price Index data for April are scheduled for release on May 13 at
8:30 A.M. (EDT)

Table 1. U.S. import price indexes and percent changes for selected categories of goods: March 2007 to March 2008 2000=100, unless otherwise noted

Footnotes(1) Relative importance figures for Air Passenger Fares Indexes are based on 2006 trade values, while the relative importance figures for the Air Freight Indexes are based on 2005 trade values.

NOTES: Data may be revised in each of the three months after original publication.
Dash = Not available

TECHNICAL NOTE
Import and Export Merchandise and Services Price Indexes -- All indexes use a modified Laspeyres
formula and are not seasonally adjusted. Price indexes for merchandise goods are reweighted annually,
with a two-year lag in the weights. Published series use a base year of 2000=100 where possible. More
detailed index series and additional information may be obtained at http://www.bls.gov/mxp, or by
calling (202) 691-7101.
Merchandise Goods Classification Systems -- The merchandise price indexes are published using
three classification systems. Items are classified by end use according to the Bureau of Economic
Analysis Classification System, by industry according to the North American Industry Classification
System (NAICS), and by product category according to the Harmonized System (HS). While
classification by end use and product category are self-explanatory, some notes are in order for
classifying items by industry. In the NAICS imports and exports tables, items are classified by output
industry, not input industry. As an example, NAICS import index 326 (plastics and rubber products
manufacturing) include outputs such as manufactured plastic rather than inputs such as petroleum. The
NAICS classification structure also matches the classification system used by the PPI (Producer Price
Index) to produce the NAICS primary products indexes.
Import Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United
States Annotated (TSUSA). Import prices are based on U.S. dollar prices paid by the U.S. importer.
The prices are generally either "free on board" (f.o.b.) foreign port or "cost, insurance, and freight"
(c.i.f.) U.S. port transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual industry. The index for
crude petroleum is calculated from data collected by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Export Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Schedule B classification
system of the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The prices used are generally either "free alongside ship"
(f.a.s.) factory or "free on board" (f.o.b.) transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual
industry. Prices used in the grain index, excluding rice, are obtained from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture.
Services Price Indexes -- The Import Air Passenger Fares Indexes are calculated from data obtained
from a commercial airline reservation system. These data exclude frequent flyer tickets and those sold
by consolidators. The Export Air Passenger Fares Indexes are calculated from data collected directly
from airlines. These data include frequent flyer tickets and those sold by consolidators. Taxes and fees
are excluded from both the Import and Export Air Passenger Fares Indexes. The Air Freight Indexes are
calculated from data collected directly from companies. These data exclude mail and passenger
baggage. The scope of the service being priced is the movement of freight from airport to airport only,
and does not include any ground transportation or port service. The Air Freight Indexes are presented
using two definitions: Balance of Payments (which represent transactions between U.S. and foreign
residents) and International (which represent transactions inbound to and outbound from the U.S.). Fact
sheets specifying detailed information for each services industry are available at http://www.bls.gov/mxp
under "Publications and Other Documentation."
Import Indexes by Locality of Origin -- Prices used in these indexes are a subset of the data collected
for the Import Price Indexes. Beginning with January 2002, the indexes are defined by locality of origin
using a nomenclature based upon the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).
Nonmanufactured goods are defined as NAICS 11 and 21 and manufactured goods are defined as
NAICS 31-33.
Revision Policy -- To reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents, monthly data
may be revised in each of the three months after original publication. After three months, no further data
revisions take place. So, for example, data released in the January release will be subject to revision in
the releases for February, March, and April.
Uses of the Data -- The primary use of the indexes is to deflate trade statistics, notably the foreign trade
sector of the National Income and Product Accounts constructed by the Department of Commerce.
Other published indexes are useful for general market analysis. For trade in international services,
Balance of Payments indexes are used for deflating National Income and Product Accounts, while
International indexes are more appropriate for market analysis. Merchandise and services indexes also
can be used to study U.S. competitiveness and to compute price elasticities, and the merchandise import
indexes by country or region of origin are useful in terms of trade analysis.
E-Mail Subscription -- The IPP news release is available through an e-mail subscription service at
(http://www.bls.gov/mxp) or (http://www.bls.gov/bls/newsrels.htm).
Additional Information -- More detailed IPP data are available on the IPP home page at
(http://www.bls.gov/mxp). Flat Files and the FTP server are available for users requiring access to
either a large volume of time series data or other IPP-related documentation. The FTP site can be
accessed at ftp://ftp.bls.gov. For technical assistance in using the BLS Internet site, send e-mail to
(labstat.helpdesk@bls.gov). For IPP data requests, send e-mail to (mxpinfo@bls.gov).
Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.
Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.